Microsurgical robot system

Abstract

A robot system for use in surgical procedures has two movable arms each carried on a wheeled base with each arm having a six of degrees of freedom of movement and an end effector which can be rolled about its axis and an actuator which can slide along the axis for operating different tools adapted to be supported by the effector. Each end effector including optical force sensors for detecting forces applied to the tool by engagement with the part of the patient. A microscope is located at a position for viewing the part of the patient. The position of the tool tip can be digitized relative to fiducial markers visible in an MRI experiment. The workstation and control system has a pair of hand-controllers simultaneously manipulated by an operator to control movement of a respective one or both of the arms. The image from the microscope is displayed on a monitor in 2D and stereoscopically on a microscope viewer. A second MRI display shows an image of the part of the patient the real-time location of the tool. The robot is MRI compatible and can be configured to operate within a closed magnet bore. The arms are driven about vertical and horizontal axes by piezoelectric motors.

1. An interface system comprising:
 a control system configured to manipulate a surgical robot under operator control, the surgical robot comprising at least one robotic arm having multiple joints and multiple degrees of freedom, the multiple joints including a first, second and third yaw joint, the yaw joints operatively linked by a plurality of roll joints, and the control system further configured to receive coordinates of registration targets located near a surgical site, the coordinates obtained using a registration tool operatively connected to the surgical robot at a known location; and 
 a display system positioned in operative relation with the control system, the display system being configured to display:
 an image or image set obtained using a three-dimensional imaging modality; 
 a plurality of operating parameters; 
 a field of view of an operating site; and 
 a magnified view of a surgical site, 
 
 wherein the control system is further configured to receive positional data for the at least one robotic arm and to register the positional data to the image or image set based on the coordinates. 
 
     
     
       2. The interface system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a two-way audio communication system that provides for communication between an operator of the control system and a person located adjacent the operating site. 
 
     
     
       3. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the display system is further configured to provide:
 a three dimensional stereoscopic display of the surgical site. 
 
     
     
       4. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the control system is configured to manipulate a surgical robot comprising two robotic arms under operator control, and the display system is configured to display:
 the image or image set on a first screen; 
 the plurality of operating parameters on a second screen; 
 the field of view of the operating site on a third screen; and 
 the magnified view of the surgical site on a fourth screen. 
 
     
     
       5. The interface system of  claim 4 , where the display system is configured to display:
 a depiction of one or more tools superimposed on at least a portion of the image or image set; and 
 a depiction of the robotic arms on the second screen. 
 
     
     
       6. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the control system includes a pair of hand controllers, each operable to control movement of an arm of the surgical robot. 
     
     
       7. The interface system of  claim 6 , where the hand controllers are configured to have at least six degrees-of-freedom. 
     
     
       8. The interface system of  claim 6 , where the hand controllers are operatively associated with a switch and are configured to activate the arms of the surgical robot only when the switch is depressed. 
     
     
       9. The interface system of  claim 6 , where the hand-controllers comprise an actuator switch configured to allow the operator to actuate a tool on the surgical robot. 
     
     
       10. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the control system is configured to provide haptic feedback to an operator of the control system. 
     
     
       11. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the control system includes a tremor filter. 
     
     
       12. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the control system is configured to scale an output of the surgical robot in relation to an input received by the control system. 
     
     
       13. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the operating parameters include operational scripts that outline a set of procedures and contingencies. 
     
     
       14. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the operating parameters include data indicating a position of the surgical robot and/or a part thereof. 
     
     
       15. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the display system is further configured to display patient physiological data. 
     
     
       16. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the display system is configured to display a depiction of one or more surgical tools superimposed on at least a portion of the image or image set. 
     
     
       17. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the image or image set is a three-dimensional magnetic resonance (MR) image or image set. 
     
     
       18. The interface system of  claim 1 , where the control system is configured to:
 receive coordinates of a location of a surgical tool held by an end effector of an arm of the surgical robot, 
 calculate a position of the surgical tool relative to the registration targets, and 
 provide an output to the display system to display a depiction of the surgical tool superimposed on at least a portion of the image or image set based on the calculated position of the surgical tool. 
 
     
     
       19. An interface system comprising:
 a control system configured to manipulate a surgical robot under operator control, the surgical robot comprising at least one robotic arm having multiple joints and multiple degrees of freedom, the multiple joints including a first, second and third yaw joint, the yaw joints operatively linked by a plurality of roll joints, and the control system further configured to receive coordinates of registration targets located near a surgical site, the coordinates obtained using a registration tool operatively connected to the surgical robot at a known location; 
 a display system configured to provide visual feedback from (a) an operating site near which the surgical robot is positioned to (b) an operator of the control system; 
 a communication system that allows audio communication between the operator of the control system and operating personnel located adjacent the operating site; and 
 an auditory feedback system configured to transmit auditory feedback from the operating site to the operator of the control system, 
 wherein the control system is further configured to receive positional data for the at least one robotic arm and to register the positional data to the image or image set based on the coordinates. 
 
     
     
       20. The interface system of  claim 19 , where the display system is configured to display:
 an image or image set obtained using a three-dimensional imaging modality; 
 a plurality of operating parameters; 
 a field of view of an operating site; and 
 a magnified view of a surgical site. 
 
     
     
       21. The interface system of  claim 20 , where the control system is configured to manipulate a surgical robot comprising two robotic arms under operator control, and the display system is configured to display:
 the image or image set on a first screen; 
 the plurality of operating parameters on a second screen; 
 the field of view of the operating site on a third screen; and 
 the magnified view of the surgical site on a fourth screen. 
 
     
     
       22. The interface system of  claim 21 , where the display system is configured to display:
 a depiction of one or more tools superimposed on at least a portion of the image or image set; and 
 a depiction of the robotic arms on the second screen. 
 
     
     
       23. The interface system of  claim 20 , where the display system is configured to display a depiction of one or more tools superimposed on at least a portion of the image or image set. 
     
     
       24. The interface system of  claim 20 , where the image or image set is a three-dimensional magnetic resonance (MR) image or image set. 
     
     
       25. The interface system of  claim 20 , where the control system is configured to:
 receive coordinates of a location of a surgical tool held by an end effector of an arm of the surgical robot, 
 calculate a position of the surgical tool relative to the registration targets, and 
 provide an output to the display system to display a depiction of the surgical tool superimposed on at least a portion of the image or image set based on the calculated position of the tool. 
 
     
     
       26. The interface system of  claim 19 , where the control system includes a pair of hand controllers, each operable to control movement of an arm of the surgical robot. 
     
     
       27. The interface system of  claim 26 , where the hand controllers are configured to have at least six degrees-of-freedom. 
     
     
       28. The interface system of  claim 26 , where the hand controllers are operatively associated with a switch and are configured to activate the arms of the surgical robot only when the switch is depressed. 
     
     
       29. The interface system of  claim 26 , where the hand-controllers comprise an actuator switch configured to allow the operator to actuate a tool on the surgical robot. 
     
     
       30. The interface system of  claim 19 , where the display system is configured to provide:
 a three dimensional stereoscopic display of a surgical site within the operating site. 
 
     
     
       31. The interface system of  claim 19 , where the control system is configured to provide haptic feedback to the operator of the control system. 
     
     
       32. The interface system of  claim 19 , where the control system includes a tremor filter. 
     
     
       33. The interface system of  claim 19 , where the control system is configured to scale an output of the surgical robot in relation to an input received by the control system. 
     
     
       34. The interface system of  claim 19 , where the operating parameters include operational scripts that outline a set of procedures and contingencies. 
     
     
       35. The interface system of  claim 19 , where the operating parameters include data indicating a position of the surgical robot and/or a part thereof. 
     
     
       36. The interface system of  claim 19 , where the communication system and the auditory feedback system are configured to provide for simultaneous talk/listen voice communication between the operator and the operating personnel. 
     
     
       37. The interface system of  claim 19 , where the display system is configured to display patient physiological data.